Dancing Through Life
by Moonlight0
Summary: Spot gave up dancing when he moved in with his mom. He goes to a new school and meets new friends. With new friends comes a new passion for dance, and with a new passion comes another chance at love. Rated T for language.
1. New Kid

**Chapter 1: New Kid on the Block**

**Disclaimer: Me? Own Newsies? Only in my dreams. All of the items you recognize, songs, dance groups etc. don't belong to me. Everything else is a product of my imagination. **

Sean "Spot" Conlon was trying very hard to ignore the insane beeping that was going on next to his head with very little success. He groaned as he rolled over to hit the off button on his alarm.

_Why is my alarm even set? _He wondered to himself for a split second before…

"FUCK!" He yelled as he sat straight up in bed. It was a Monday, and it was his first day at his new school, today was going to be hell.

"Sean Conlon!" His mother's angry voice reached him through his closed bedroom door and he flinched. "If I EVER hear that word out of your mouth again I will ground you for a month, now get your lazy ass out of bed and come get breakfast." Spot heard her footsteps retreat down the hall and then heard the creak of the stairs as she went down them.

Spot sighed. He really couldn't blame his mom for yelling at him for his language, she had done a lot for him the last couple of weeks and the least he could do was try and obey her "rules". He chuckled to himself, the only rules were to watch his language, basically not say the f-word, and be home by eleven on school nights. She didn't have to worry about anything else…like him sneaking girls in…this train of thought made Spot's bad mood turn into a dark ugly mood. The only good thing about starting at a brand new school was that no one would know him or his past. He could start off with a clean slate.

Spot rolled out of bed and started getting ready. He pulled on a pair of close fitting jeans and a light blue, tight fitting, button down shirt. He walked into the bathroom and started at himself in the mirror. His dirty blond hair was easy to style with a little gel. His blue gray eyes peered out from a pale face. The only blemish on his skin was a small scar on his left cheekbone. The last few bruises, which had made him look like a multi-colored leopard, had faded a couple days ago. His nose was crooked but you couldn't tell it had been broken recently. There was no evidence left from the beating, or the events that had followed, at least, nothing physical. He refused to visit the past; today was already going to suck enough.

"Sean! You're going to miss the bus. Move it!"

Spot rolled his eyes and finished brushing his teeth before grabbing his shoes and backpack and racing down the stairs. He was a senior in high school and he had to ride the bus; what a great way to start off his first day. His mom was in the kitchen buttering toast. She was a short woman; about two heads shorter than Spot's six feet. Her hair was a honey blond and her clear blue eyes were the easiest way to read her mood. Right now they were sparkling but when Spot looked closer he could tell that she was nervous and apprehensive about the day, even though she was trying to look happy for him. He set his backpack down on a chair and turned to face her.

"Mom, I'll be fine. I promise." He said trying to get rid of some of the worry in her eyes. "I won't do anything dumb. I'll sit in the back of all my classes and be on my best behavior. I won't even talk."

"Well, you could try and make a couple of friends." She hinted.

Spot winced. "Maybe, but I doubt, it most people don't like me."

"Sean….no one knows you here. Just try."

"Mom, that's the thing. No one knows me, and once they learn who I am they won't want to and we will be back to square one." His words came out slightly defensive.

"Well what about common interests? You could get into a dance-"

"NO! I don't want to dance. Ever again." His tone left no room for argument.

He grabbed the piece of toast from her hand and took a monstrous bite out of it, choking slightly as he tried to chew. His mom rolled her eyes but she was laughing as she handed him the cup of coffee she had just poured.

"Thanks," he replied; happy that he had broken the tension that had started to build. He quickly finished the coffee and grabbed his bag, the piece of toast still in his hand as he started towards the door.

"Where are you going?" His mom asked.

He turned and gave her an incredulous look. "To the bus stop. I am going to be late. Remember?"

She smiled and threw something at him. "A senior in high school shouldn't have to ride the bus. Go see what is in the garage." He was so shocked he almost dropped the keys she had tossed at him. He ran to the garage door and yanked it open. Sitting next to his moms powder blue jeep was a bright red, two door, 2005 Chevy cavalier.

"Thanks mom!" He gave her a quick hug before jumping down the steps and racing over to the car.

"Sean, if you crash the car you will be grounded until your thirty. Got it?"

Her voice was serious but her eyes were smiling. "Got it."

"Good, now try and have a good day at school."

"Well my morning has been good so let's see if the luck holds." He climbed into the car and headed towards the school, hoping that the day wouldn't turn into a total disaster.

Spot pulled into Southern Mountain High School's parking lot and easily found a place to park. Larkside was a small town where everybody knew everyone; Spot would be amazed if the senior class had more than two hundred students in it. Spot would easily stick out as the new kid. It was going to be a lot different than his old school in Utah; his old senior class had been close to eight hundred students. He shut off the engine, climbed out of his car and looked around trying not to be too obvious about how lost he was. His mom had delivered his transfer papers two weeks ago and the school had suggested that he wait until the first day of second quarter to actually begin. He hadn't gone with her when she had dropped off the papers since it was a school day, and his face had still been a lovely color of black and blue. He had no idea where the main office was and that was where he needed to go to pick up his schedule. With a sigh Spot followed a group of kids into the building, trying his hardest to ignore the curious looks he was getting.

The exterior of the building was covered in brown bricks; there wasn't any litter on the ground either which was surprising. The windows on the first floor were clean and easy to see into; Spot hoped the inside was just as nice as the outside. His old school had been covered with graffiti both inside and out, after a while nobody had bothered trying to clean it up; beer and cigarette butts had littered the ground but the administration had done nothing.

The inside of SMHS was just as clean as the outside; which made Spot happy. Students stood in groups around lockers, laughing and talking about what had happened that weekend.

"Hi!" Spot turned and saw a very short girl standing at his elbow. Her brown eyes sparkled as she looked at him.

"I don't recognize you so I am guessing you just transferred. This isn't a big school so we tend to notice when someone is new." She laughed, and didn't give him any time to reply. "Do you have your schedule? Do you know where your first class is? What grade are you in?"

His mouth dropped slightly. She was rattling off questions faster than he could answer them. "Umm…Your right, I just transferred. I'm a senior and I don't have my schedule yet. Do you think you could tell me where the main office is?"

"Of course!" She was practically bouncing up and down as she answered. "I'll _show_ you where it is come on." With that she set off down the hall. Spot trailed after her hoping that she might be in some of his class, she was friendly.

_Look mom, I don't even have to try to make new friends._ He thought sarcastically.

"I'm Emma, by the way." She said turning to smile at him.

"My name is Sean." He gave her a tentative smile in return.

She stopped. "Here is the main office, I'm sorry but I have to go. I hope we have a couple of classes together. Good luck" She turned a disappeared into the crowd leaving a stunned Spot in her wake.

_Oooookay, _he thought, _she is totally weird, nice, but weird._

Spot turned and walked through the open doors into the office. A couple computers hummed but only one lady was in view.

"Excuse me…" he began.

She looked up and saw him, "Hi, you must be Sean Conlon."

"Yes, I am. I'm here to get my schedule."

She thumbed through a couple papers sitting on a desk and pulled out a half sheet of paper.

"Here is your schedule. Math and science classes are on the second floor, English, history, the library, and the cafeteria are all on the first. You have first lunch which is right after fourth period. If you have any questions ask one of the teachers. Have a good day."

Her dismissal was abrupt and caught Spot off guard. "Ummm…thanks." He grabbed his schedule and started to turn and walk away only to bump into three boys that were talking behind him. It was the shortest one that he had actually bumped into, and it was the shortest one that caught Spot's attention. The boy's hair was a dark brown and laughter shown out of his brown eyes. Spots heart started to beat hard and butterflies were not fluttering they were stampeding through his stomach. His brain had short circuited and nothing was coming out of his mouth.

"Sorry," the boy's voice was sincere.

Spot nodded and left the office; trying his hardest to not look back. He leaned against the wall and took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind and focus on the classes and where he was supposed to go first. He looked down at his schedule but all he could see were laughing brown eyes.

_Dammit! Focus Spot!_ He yelled at himself. _If you are lucky you won't have any classes with that boy. We can get through the rest of senior year and then move on. You can do this._

With the mental coaching still going on in his head Spot looked at his schedule again and sighed in relief when he saw writing.

_**Sean Conlon Senior Homeroom: Engl. 125**_

_Class:__Teacher:__Room:_

_Period 1 English 12 Miss Ward Engl. 125_

_Period 2 U.S. History Mr. Larson SS. 136_

_Period 3 Biology Miss Christensen S. 254_

_Period 4 Library aid Staff Library_

_Period 5 Film Studies Mr. Portman S. 211_

_Period 6 Algebra 2 Mr. Johns Math 205_

_Period 7 Computer Basics Miss Henning Computer Lab_

Even though he was a senior Spot had to take Computer Basics, which was usually a sophomore class. The course, unlike his old school, was required at SMHS, but not even being the only senior in a sophomore class was going to be the worst thing of the day. Lunch was bound to be the worst period; nothing screamed "New Kid" like sitting alone. Spot sighed, and headed off to first period English.

English passed with no incident, the class read the first chapter of Hamlet, which held no interest for Spot; he found the entire thing confusing. He walked into his History class right as the bell rang, Mr. Larson, the teacher, stopped him. "We have a new student here with us today, everybody please welcome Mr. Colon."

"Actually, it's Conlon." Spot corrected.

Larson blinked at him, and then looked at the paper in his hand. "I am sorry; I thought that was a typo."

"It's alright," Spot replied, not sure if they were actually going to get along if he was already correcting the teacher.

"Take any seat that's empty." With that Larson turned around and headed toward the board, ready to start class.

Spot headed towards the far left row; the desks had been pushed up against the wall and he would have something to lean on. He sat down and the boy in front of him turned around.

"Hi, I'm Michael, and this is Ryan," the kid sitting in front of Spot gestured to the kid on his right.

"I'm Sean, but most people call me Spot." His nickname came out of his mouth like word vomit. Had he really told these strangers his nickname? Well it was too late to take it back now.

"Spot?" the kid named Ryan asked.

"Uh…yeah, it's an old nickname." Spot said reluctantly.

They could tell he was uncomfortable so they did the one thing in the world that could have made him comfortable. "We understand old nicknames," Michael told him, "Ryan here goes by Blink most of the time." Ryan was glaring daggers at Michael.

"Blink?" Spot was very confused.

"Yeah," Michael laughed, "When we were kids he wore this eye patch to school one day, his mom couldn't get him to take it off for weeks, a kid called him Blink and the name stuck."

"Yeah well you think that's bad?" Blink asked, "Michael goes by Mush."

Spot didn't get a chance to question the nickname Blink just kept on talking.

"In our dance group one year we were learning a hard lift, Mush was scared he was going to drop the girl. When our director asked him why he wasn't practicing he told him his muscles felt like mush."

Spot laughed. He couldn't help it. Blink and Mush had to be the dumbest nicknames high school boys could go by, but dumb nicknames or not the two seemed nice.

"And you've already met our other friend, Anthony," Mush was talking again.

"Anthony?" Spot was confused again, the only boys he had met were the two in front of him and…oh hell…the three boys he had ran into in the main office. It had been Mush, Blink, and…Anthony, the boy with the gorgeous brown eyes.

"Yeah we accidentally bumped into you in the office."

"Oh, yeah, I remember. Sorry about earlier."

"It was our fault," Blink said, "If you need help finding any of your classes let us know."

Blink and Mush faced front again before Larson could yell at them. Spot was amazed, it was barely nine and he had already talked to three friendly people. Maybe being here wouldn't be so bad.

Third period biology and fourth period library aid passed quickly, as the bell rang signaling lunch Spot grew nervous again, yeah he had talked to some people but that didn't mean that he could sit with them at lunch. Spot walked down the hall and towards the cafeteria as slowly as he could, hoping to kill time and make the forty five minute lunch end as quickly as possible.

"Spot! Hey SPOT!"

He turned trying to see who was yelling his name. He had a pretty good idea who it could be. The only ones who knew his nickname were Blink and Mush; sure enough both of them were walking down the hall towards him. "You have first lunch too? Great! Do you want to eat with us or are you eating with someone else? If you are, that's cool."

Mush was talking a mile a minute and Spot wondered idly if he was related to Emma at all. "I am not eating with any one, and I would like to eat with you guys."

"Great!" Mush exclaimed, before he dashed to get in line. Blink rolled his eyes, "Mush gets very hyper when he hasn't had anything to eat in a while. Sorry."

Spot laughed as he joined Blink in the line for pizza, "That's fine; it takes more than that to scare me off." They paid for their food then headed over to the table Mush was sitting at with…Emma. Well speak of the devil.

"Spot this is Emma; she is a friend of ours." Blink explained as he sat down next to Mush. Spot took a seat next to Emma.

"Spot? I thought your name was Sean?" Before Spot could even begin to explain he realized she wasn't done. "Blink your behind on introductions, we have already met. Mush, breathe in between bites or you're going to choke." It seemed that Emma was a chatterbox even when she wasn't hungry.

"Spot's a nickname, my birth name is Sean." Spot explained.

Emma nodded and turned to Blink, "Are you ready for tonight?" she asked. Not only was the girl talkative, she changed topics fast.

"Yeah, I think so, I am still a little nervous about the basket toss but I think Courtney and I will be fine."

"Well I'm not ready!" Mush, who had finished his burrito, jumped into the conversation, "I'm still only hitting the correct key half the time. Even thinking about tonight makes me feel like I am going to puke."

Spot had no idea what they were talking about so he toned them out and concentrated on the other students in the cafeteria. Lunch ended and Spot headed toward Film Studies; he was one of the first kids in the door and most of the seats were empty. Mr. Portman told him there wasn't a seating chart so he could sit where ever he wanted. Spot chose a seat in the middle of the room and waited for the class to begin. The door opened and Spot's head lifted, Anthony walked into the room and took a seat in front of Spot. Spots palms started to sweat and he watched, as if in slow motion, Anthony turn in his chair to face him.

"Hi, Blink and Mush told me that they have history and lunch with you, they also said that they explained our weird nicknames. I'm Anthony but a lot of people call me Racetrack, or Race for short. I like Nascar." He added the last part with a sheepish grin.

Spot didn't get a chance to say anything; Mr. Portman turned off the lights and Race turned to face the T.V. at the front of the room. Spot couldn't focus on anything for the rest of the class. Instead of seeing 'A Christmas Story' he saw Race's eyes and grin. Spot sighed, _Why? Why did he have to have a class with him?_ It was a very long time until the bell rang for seventh period.

Computer essentials passed quickly. It took him close to ten minutes to finish the simple excel format the teacher had assigned, and he spent the rest of the class on line. It wasn't until the final bell rang that he realized his first day at school had ended. The drive home seemed a lot shorter than the ride to school had been now that he wasn't nervous about what the day held. As he walked into the house he knew his mom would be waiting to hear all about his first day; he made his face perfectly blank. He was determined to not show his emotions, at least not for a little while.

"Hey, how was your first day?" She looked at Spot trying to gauge his emotions but his face was blank.

"It was fine." He replied, amazed how uninterested his voice sounded.

"Well that's good, I'm glad your first day went alright."

He could tell she wanted to ask more but he could also sense that she didn't want to push him, so she left it at that.

"Well I'm going to head up to my room." He started up the stairs and then stopped and turned to face his mom. "You were wrong mom."

Her face showed shock, confusion, and hurt. He continued before she could say anything.

"I made friends without even trying." He smirked and raced up the stairs.

"SEAN CONLON! Get back down here and tell me the truth about your first day of school!" She yelled as she followed him up the stairs and caught him right before he could lock himself in his room. She could move fast when she wanted to. He was laughing as she glared at him.

"Fine, I'll tell you the truth, but I think I deserve cookies."

**Well there you go. Please read and review. **

**This 12 page chapter was celebrated with Oreos.**


	2. Johnson Productions

**Chapter 2: **

**Disclaimer: No. I don't own anything. Don't sue.**

Spot woke up the next morning in a good mood, which was odd for him; he hadn't been in a good mood for months. His good mood was due to the fact that today, unlike yesterday he had friends he could sit and talk with. He rolled out of bed, and started to get ready. He pulled on a pair of jeans a short sleeve green shirt and his leather jacket; it was unseasonably warm for mid-November. He quickly finished getting ready and raced down the stairs.

"Morning mom." He said as he slid into the kitchen on his socks.

"SHIT!" the toast flew out of her and landed butter side down on the floor. "Sean, don't scare me like that." She tried to glare at him but a smile was tugging at her lips.

Spot laughed as he picked the toast up off the floor and threw it away. "Sorry mom, I didn't mean to."

"You're in a good mood this morning." She stated as she handed him a new piece of toast and a plate that had scrambles eggs piled on it.

"Yeah well, for once, I actually have friends at school." He sat down at the table and started on his eggs, which actually tasted really good. His mom wasn't a very good cook, they usually had take out, or meals from a box.

"You have no idea how happy that makes me." She grinned as she poured a glass of milk and grabbed her own plate of eggs.

"Well after you asked for every detail last night, including when I went to the bathroom, I think I can guess how happy you are."

"I did not ask when you went to the bathroom; and you deserved my questioning after you insulted me."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Thanks for breakfast." He was laughing as he grabbed his bag and headed towards the garage door.

"Do not 'whatever' me! And have a good day!" she yelled as he walked away.

He waved over his shoulder, a smile on his face.

Spot closed his locker and looked around; he had about ten minutes before first period started. He had just put in his right IPod ear bud when…

"Hi Spot!"

He jumped and mock glared at the petite blond standing next to him. "Hi Emma, how are you?"

"I'm great! How are you? Have you seen Mush or Blink? What are you listening to?"

Spot just laughed talking to Emma was always going to be interesting. "I am good, I haven't seen Mush or Blink and I am listening to N'sync. I know that they are a boy band and broke up forever ago but-"

"I love N'sync," she squealed at the top of her lungs. "They are great; we are actually doing a street dance to one of their songs! Oh hi guys!"

Blink and Mush had arrived. "Hi Emma, hey Spot. What are we talking about?"

"Spot's interest in music; he is listening to N'sync, and I was just telling him how much I love them."

"Yeah we noticed your enthusiasm down the hall; in fact I think people on the other side of the school noticed your enthusiasm." Mush teased her. Emma punched him but there wasn't a lot of force behind the blow.

"Blink, if you can't control your-"

Blink shot her a look that made her shut up instantly. Spot was amazed and then confused; what had she been about to say?

"Where's Race?" Emma finally asked.

"Right here."

Spot almost had a heart attack, Race had appeared in between him and Mush with no warning and damn did he look good. He had on dark colored jeans and a tight Aeropostale t-shirt.

_Breathe, dumbass, _he mentally scolded himself. Spot took a deep breath through his nose and almost wished he hadn't. Almost. Race had on the most delicious cologne Spot had ever smelled; which wasn't doing good things to his already over excited heart. Spot's mind started to wander and he didn't hear his friends call his name.

"Spot?"

He blinked to see everyone looking at him with puzzled looks. "Oh sorry, I was just…umm…thinking about an assignment…in English. I better go so I can work on it. See you guys in History."

Spot walked down the hall hoping he wasn't blushing, before he was out of ear shot he heard Race say, "Why do I have the feeling he doesn't like me?"

Spot sighed, _If only you knew the truth._

English was terrible, Spot couldn't focus, which wasn't good since he still had no idea what was going on in Hamlet. He made his way to history hoping that Mush and Blink wouldn't bring up this morning. He walked in to see that they were in their seats and already talking.

"Hey guys, what's going on?"

"Oh hey, we're talking about our performance last night." Blink answered, Mush meanwhile was staring at his desk looking annoyed.

"Oh yeah, you guys were talking about it at lunch yesterday. What's wrong Mush?"

"My voice cracked last night! In the middle of my solo! And Blink here won't let me forget it!"

Blink laughed, "None of the audience noticed, just the rest of us in Fame. It was funny though you sounded like you were fourteen."

Mush looked like he was going to hit Blink, so Spot decided it would be a good idea to distract him.

"Wait, I am confused. Fame? And are you part of a singing group? Because yesterday you mentioned a basket toss and that's a dance lift. Emma also mentioned a street dance this morning."

Blink and Mush started at him, Blink's insult forgotten. "What?"

"How did you know what a basket toss is?" Mush asked.

"I umm used to dance…a long time ago. But I don't anymore." He added quickly.

Mush nodded, "Ok well, to answer your questions-"

"Oh great," Blink interrupted, "now that you've got him started on it he won't shut up about it. He loves Johnson Productions."

"Yeah, well so do you!"

"Yes I do, but _you'll_ talk about it forever. If Larson catches us talking we'll get detention, save it for lunch."

"Fine, sorry Spot."

"It's fine, I really don't feel like a detention anyways."

Spot got to lunch before everyone else; there hadn't been a lot to do in the library so they had let him leave early. He grabbed a chicken sandwich and sat down at a table waiting for Blink and Mush to show up. Emma walked up and sat down next to him, Mush and Blink were right behind her.

"Hi" All three of them greeted him.

"Hi guys."

"So," Mush started, "to answer your questions."

"What questions?" Emma interrupted "If you got Mush to talk and not stuff his face it must be something important."

"Oh ha ha Emma. It is important, he wants to know about Johnson Productions; and before you say anything _I _get to tell him so eat your salad and be quiet." He smiled as he said it.

She stuck her tongue at him but kept her mouth shut.

"They are both obsessed; I am so so sorry Spot." Blink commented. Mush turned and punched him. Hard. Blink closed his mouth and didn't say anything else as he rubbed his arm.

"First, we are both a singing and a dance group. We have winter and spring medleys; medleys are a bunch of songs that have things in common, like 60's music, or soundtracks from musicals. For example, our winter medley is songs from the Polar Express. We try out for solos, which are the songs verses, and everyone in the group sings the chorus. During winter we only have one medley, but in the summer we have two. We dance while we sing.

Second, there are tons of groups. Kiddin' around is the youngest; they are preschoolers. The oldest is Synergy, they are all college kids and older. We," he motioned to include Emma and Blink, "along with Racetrack are in Fame. It is the second oldest group; mainly juniors and seniors."

"Wait, Race does it with you?" Spot knew he had to be dreaming, the cute kid he had a crush on was a dancer? Why hadn't he moved in with his mom years ago?

"Yep, he is actually one of the best singers in our group. Anyways back to what I was saying. We perform at tons of places; malls, retirement homes, and we have a huge concert at West Hills High School; it's basically our last performance for the season. The older groups also go on tour in the summer and perform their spring medleys. We get to go to California this year, Synergy is lucky, they get to go international. Last year they went to England for three weeks. The company is called Johnson Productions; it is owned by Mark Johnson who teaches voice. His daughter, along with a couple of others, teach the choreography. It's way cool, and tons of fun…when you actually do well and your voice doesn't crack during your solo."

"Mush, honey, no one noticed. You'll hit it next time." Emma, patted his arm sympathetically as Mush dug into his pizza; obviously done with his explanation. Emma took over.

"The singing, for our age group is an eight part harmony, it's complex but not impossible. The dancing consists of solos, duets, group numbers, and lifts."

"Yeah, Spot already knows about those. He knew what a basket toss was; he used to be a dancer." Blink told Emma.

Her eyes got wide "You did? That's awesome!"

He cut her off before she could say anything else. "Key words, used to be. I don't dance anymore."

"Why not?" All three of them asked at the same time.

Spot wasn't sure how to answer, he was spared from the difficulty of it when the bell rang signaling lunch was over. All four of them got up and headed towards their next class, Spot was relieved he hadn't had to say anything. He didn't feel like explaining his past to his day old friends.

Spot walked into Film Studies hoping it wasn't going to be awkward between him and Race; though now that Spot knew he could sing _and dance_ the odds weren't in his favor. He took his seat and waited. Race entered and walked up next to him.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" he asked.

Spot looked him, _umm…hell yes I mind, if you sit there I might just go nuts, or do something so totally dumb I'll have to transfer schools. Again. _ Spot didn't say any of this out loud; he remembered the comment he had heard Race say this morning and decided he could suffer through a period sitting next to Race. Maybe.

"Nope I don't mind at all." He offered Race a smile; who smiled back and took the seat. _And maybe not if he smiles like that again._

"So," Spot began, trying to clear his mind, "Mush told me your one of the best singers in your Johnson Productions group."

Race's head snapped up and he looked at Spot and then he blushed; it wasn't major but Spot could tell his cheeks were red. _Damn it Race. That's not helping. _He thought. 

"Uhh…yeah, well I'm not the best singer, but I am in a singing and dance group. It's called-"

"Fame. Right? I got the whole low down at lunch from both Mush and Emma."

Race flinched, "I'm sorry having one of them talk your ear off is bad enough but both of them," he shuddered, "anyway, yeah I am in Fame, and it's a lot cooler than it sounds."

"I think it sounds cool."

Race smiled, "Thanks." That was all he had time to get out before Mr. Portman shut the lights off and told everyone to shut up. Literally. The period was both over too quickly and not fast enough for Spot; as the bell rang both boys stood up, but before Spot could say anything Portman called Race over to his desk. Spot left, he couldn't trust himself to not say something totally condemning at the moment.

Spot was heading towards his car after school when he ran into Mush, Race, and Blink. "Hey Spot," Mush said, "I didn't get a chance to ask you at lunch but I was wondering if you would like to come to our performance this Saturday. It's at Middle Brook mall next to their food court. You seemed interested at lunch so I thought you would like to see a show in person."

"Yeah, sure I would love to." Spot was surprised when he realized he was telling the complete truth. He hadn't known these guys long but he was already really good friends with them. Yeah the performance would make him watch other people dance, which was slightly painful but all three of them were grinning like morons, so he couldn't say no, even if he wanted to.

"Awesome!" Mush yelled, causing a couple girls walking by to jump and glare.

"We will see you tomorrow; we have practice right after school, so sorry we can't stay and talk." Blink explained as they started heading towards their cars.

"That's fine, see you all tomorrow."

Spot climbed into his car thinking. There was no way in hell he could tell his mom about Johnson Productions and going to a performance, she would freak out like a twelve year old girl seeing Twilight__for the first time. He would tell her that he was going to the mall with some friends, it wasn't a lie, it was just stretching the truth. He wasn't going with them but they would all be there; then, after the performance was over, he would tell her.

Spot had just walked through the school doors the next day when Blink and Mush found him.

"Hey Spot! How was your night?" Mush came up behind him and slung his arm around his shoulders.

"Dude, tone it down a little." Blink gave him a stern look and Mush removed his arm; looking sheepish.

"Sorry."

Spot looked at both of them replaying some things from the last couple of days in his head. Were they…? No probably not, it was just his imagination.

"No problem, my night was good. How about you guys?"

"It was…great." Mush smirked at Blink, who turned bright red and glared at Mush before grabbing his arm and dragging him away.

"See you in History." Blink yelled over his shoulder as he dragged a laughing Mush down the hall.

_On second thought maybe they are gay._ Spot didn't want to jump to conclusions, but he was hoping that maybe, just maybe they were.

Spot couldn't wait for first period English to end so he could go to History and get some answers to his questions. The bell rang and he just about sprinted down the hall to class. He was just about to walk in the door when he saw a flash of blonde hair out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Blink and Mush walking down the hall. Holding hands. His mouth almost hit the floor, he couldn't believe it; well actually he could after the little conversation from this morning. A lot of previous conversations also started to make more sense.

Blink reached him but he wasn't smiling, "Hi." That was all he said, he just stood there and looked at him.

"Umm...Hi?" Spot responded. He didn't know what was up with Blink's attitude change. Spot looked around, trying to see if anybody was reacting to the two boys holding hands. Nobody was, yeah they were getting a couple looks, but so was the straight couple leaning up against the wall a couple feet away swapping spit. Spot was amazed, they were accepted. How in the world had he been lucky enough to transfer to a school were gay kids were accepted? True the school was small but still.

"Look, Spot, you're really cool, and would make a great friend because we have some things in common but Mush and I…" Blink trailed off and Spot could tell he was trying to find the easiest way to say what was on his mind; so he helped him out.

"You're gay? And together?" Spot asked.

"Yeah and we are accepted at this school, which is a damn miracle, so if you don't like it…" Blink trailed off again.

"And if I don't like it we can't be friends, and I am no longer invited to your performance. Is that what you're saying?"

Blink blushed and wouldn't meet his gaze, so Mush nodded. "Sorry."

"No I understand. It's just…" This time it was Spot who trailed off.

"Yeah?" Mush looked hopeful and fearful at the same time.

"What would you say if I told you that I am gay too?"

**Next time: The reaction to Spot's confession and the performance at the mall.**

**Shout outs: **

**DiAmOnDsrBLUe: Thanks for your review! It's not a performing arts school, just regular high school. I am glad you liked it!**

**I love writing the dialogue for Emma. The girl just makes me laugh. I realize these last few chapters don't have a lot of Race in them. That is because I am saving his wonderful character for later in the story, like next chapter. We can't have tons of Awesome!Race running around now can we? (Ok we can but not in these chapters. ) Also, I love the Twilight series, so don't pelt me with tomatoes; it seemed like a good analogy.**

**You know the drill press the button and leave a review. A lot of you are reading but not reviewing. Please review so I know what I need to work on. Thanks **


	3. Cut Loose

**Chapter 3: Cut Loose**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, the songs, or anything else you recognize. Which doesn't leave me with much. *sigh***

_What would you say if I told you that I'm gay to?_

Spot's confession echoed in his ears as Blink stared at him dumbfounded; Mush on the other hand was grinning and poking a catatonic Blink.

"I _told_ you." Mush said, still poking Blink.

Spot looked at Mush, "You _knew?" _ Spot was a little apprehensive; he didn't think Mush and Blink would really treat him any differently, after all they were gay, but he was still brand spanking new at school; people didn't really know him and if they found out…well he had already traveled down one road. He was hoping he would get to travel the "Road of Acceptance" this time around.

"Well I had my suspicions-"

"Look you can't tell anyone, alright." Spot quickly interrupted.

"Well, yeah, I mean, you should tell people when you're ready, but…"

Blink still hadn't said anything; he was following the conversation like a tennis match.

"Look, I'll explain later why I don't want anyone to know, but we need to get to class. Can we just keep this between us for a little while?"

"Of course." Mush turned to walk into class but Spot and Blink stayed where they were; staring at each other.

"Are we friends again?"

Blink's face was blank, and then his lips twitched and he was grinning. "Yeah of course we're friends, which means you are still invited to our show Saturday."

The rest of the day passed normally; Mush and Blink kept their promise about not telling anyone; which made Spot grateful. Emma chatted at lunch while Mush inhaled his food and Blink kept him from choking. Race sat next to him in film studies, and for a while Spot was terrified that he knew, but Race was normal and towards the end of the period Spot relaxed.

In his computer studies class he had enough time to think and he realized that he needed to tell his mom that half his friends knew about him being gay; he also needed to tell Blink and Mush the whole story.

The latter was going to be the hardest.

That night Spot decided to ask his mom about going to the mall before he told her about that day at school. He looked at her over their meal of Olive Garden take-out.

"Hey mom, I'm going to the mall with some friends on Saturday. Is that ok?"

Spot's mom stared at him for a couple of seconds before she broke the silence, "Are you sick or were you abducted by aliens? Honestly I am leaning towards the aliens; that's more likely."

"You think that's surprising? I told Blink and Mush that I was gay today; after they told me that they were dating."

She spit pasta clear across the table; Spot wiped a piece of it off his cheek grimacing.

"Sorry honey, I just, you…what?"

Spot took a deep breath, "Blink and Mush told me today before history that they were dating. They weren't sure how I was going to handle it. They told me if I was a homophobe that we couldn't be friends. I told them that I was gay, and also swore them to secrecy. The best part though is that they are accepted at school mom. Nobody was calling them fag or queer. It was great."

"Honey that's fantastic, and I understand why you don't want them to tell anyone, but did you tell them everything or…"

"No, but they're my friends, I know I have to tell them everything."

"I'm sure they'll understand, I'm proud of you honey."

"Thanks mom…so about the mall?"

She laughed, "Of course you can go, but I want one thing."

"What?"

"I want you to invite your friends over for dinner one night. I'd like to get to know them better."

Spot smiled, "I can do that. I'll see if they can come over Saturday after the mall. Is that ok?"

"That would be great."

That night, before it got to late Spot called Mush.

"Hello?"

"Blink?"

"Yep, what's up Spot?"

Before Spot could say anything Mush was heard in the background.

"Blink! Give me my damn phone!"

Spot heard a thud, and scuffling noises before,

"Hey Spots, how's it going?" Mush was now on the phone.

"Do you want me to call back later?"

"Nope, it's all good. OW! Blink, watch it! Sorry Spot go ahead."

"Okay, well I had some things I wanted to talk to you and Blink about. Do you think we could meet before school tomorrow?"

"Sure want to meet at the Starbucks right next to the school say seven o'clock?"

"Yeah that sounds great. See you then."

"Awesome, have a good night."

"Thanks, you to."

Spot crawled into bed that night with mixed feelings. He lay awake for most of the night going over what he was going to tell his friends the next day until he finally fell asleep.

The next morning Spot bought himself a coffee and sat at a table; nervously waiting for Mush and Blink to show up. It didn't take them long. They bought their coffee and sat at the table. They all looked at each other before Mush broke the silence.

"So, what did you want to talk to us about?"

"Well," Spot began, "I didn't tell you everything yesterday but you guys are my friends and I want you to know. This is going to be hard so please don't interrupt me. I might not be able to say everything if you do."

Blink and Mush nodded their understanding and waited for him to start.

"My parents got a divorce when I was little; things had been rough between them for a while and they finally realized that staying together for my sake was a bad idea. My dad won custody; so I was only allowed to visit my mom on major holidays. It was too hard for her to see me grow up without her so she moved from Utah out here to Virginia. My dad and I were close; we did a lot together, but I missed my mom a lot as well. I realized I was gay right before high school started, and I didn't tell anyone. My school wasn't very accepting so I kept it to myself and I was too scared to tell my dad; I had crushes but I never acted on them. When my senior year started I had a major crush on one of the boys in my class; one day…well I told him that I liked him. It was the wrong thing to do. He told his friends that a _fag _liked him and they beat me up after school the next day. When my dad saw me he freaked. He asked why I had been fighting, so I finally told him that I was gay. He went crazy and added to the bruises on my face and kicked me out of the house. When I called my mom she went nuts. She told me to book myself into a hotel and that as soon as she got there she would cover the charges. She flew out that night, and got a room right next to mine. We talked all night and I told her there was no way in hell I was living with my dad. The next day we went over to my dad's house together. I was scared shitless, but I have never seen my mom that angry. She chewed my dad's ass, and was threatening to have him charged for child abuse. She told him that she was going to take custody of me and that I would move in with her, and if he wanted to battle it out in court she would sue until he didn't have a leg to stand on. He told her I wasn't his son. He hadn't raised his son to be a fag. On our flight she told me that she didn't give a flying fuck if I liked boys. I was her son and she would always love me."

By this time I was crying and I didn't care. Mush put a comforting arm around me and handed me a napkin.

"We're so sorry Spot. We won't tell anyone until you're ready. Nobody deserves what happened to you."

"I know; I'm just lucky my mom is so cool. She really took me in and is giving me one of the best lives I could have. There's more."

"More?" Blink asked quietly.

"Yeah, I used to be really into to dance; when they were beating me into the asphalt they told me…" at this point I started to blush. I knew the accusations weren't true, but I didn't want Mush and Blink to get mad at me, "well they told me only queers dance. I know it's not true but it still hurt. So I haven't danced since then. I think your group is really cool but...yeah." Spot finished lamely.

"We understand," Mush promised. "Besides, there are plenty of straight people in our group."

I laughed a little. I knew my friends were trying to cheer me up. "Well, now you know."

"Yeah, thanks for trusting us with this Spot." Blink said. "If you ever need someone to talk to, we're here."

I don't know what I did to deserve these friends but man am I lucky.

The school day passed quickly; after I had told Blink and Mush about my history life seemed much easier. When I met up with my friends for lunch I decided to ask them to dinner.

"So, my mom is pretty happy I have made friends. She wants you all to come over Saturday after your performance for dinner; would you be able to do that?"

"Oh yes!" Emma squealed, "I would love to meet your mom! Do we need to dress up? Will it be a formal dinner? Should I bring a dessert or something?"

"Emma!" Blink glared at her. "Calm down. I think Spot was talking to Mush and I, not you."

Emma blinked and looked slightly crestfallen, "Oh." She said in a small voice.

"BLINK!" Mush and Spot yelled simultaneously.

"Of course Emma is invited, all of you are invited, including Race; if he wants to come. It's not formal and no you guys don't have to bring anything. My mom has it all taken care of."

Emma smiled, "Thanks Spot."

"No problem, but fair warning, my mom is a little crazy."

Spot walked into film studies feeling extremely nervous; asking Race to come to dinner made Spot feel like he was asking him on a date. Race was already sitting in the seat next to the one Spot usually occupied. Spot sat next to him and nervously rubbed his hands on his jeans.

"Hey Race?" Spot asked.

Race turned and looked at him. "Yeah?"

"My mom invited you. Emma, Blink, and Mush to dinner Saturday night after your performance if you're not doing anything. Would you like to come?"

Race grinned, "I would love to. That sounds fun. Thanks."

Spot smiled, "No problem." He turned to face the T.V. as Mr. Portman turned the lights off and sighed. That had been easier than he thought it would be.

The rest of the week passed quickly and soon Saturday was here.

Spot walked into the mall and easily found the food court; a couple of tables and chairs had been moved to create a stage in the middle of the floor. Speakers and musical equipment were set up around the corners; a small enclosed canopy had been set up towards the back wall where the performers could change in privacy. The seats close to the stage were filling up fast; so Spot grabbed a chair at an empty table where he would have a good view of the stage, and set his smoothie down.

The performers walked onto the stage and took their starting positions. The boys were in black slacks and white shirts and black ties. The girls were wearing black dance pants and white shirts with silver vests. Their heads all snapped down at once and the surrounding area got quite as a man with a deep voice spoke.

"Ladies and gentleman, from Johnson Productions in Newport Virginia, we introduce: Fame!"

The song Footloose blared from the speakers and the group sprang into action; everybody was together and focused. Every dancer was smiling and getting the audience into what they were doing; girls spun and jumped while the boys tossed others girls in the air doing lifts that made the audience clap and cheer. It took all of Spot's willpower to not jump up and join them.

Emma stepped forward a microphone in her hand and Spot realized that some of the other dancers were holding microphones as well. Emma opened her mouth and began to sing.

"_I've been working so hard  
>I'm punching my card<br>Eight hours for what?  
>Oh, tell me what I got.<br>I got this feeling  
>That times just holdin' me down<br>I'll hit the ceiling  
>Or else I'll tear up this town."<em>

The rest of the group joined in with the chorus, still dancing. Their voices harmonized perfectly; nobody was off and no one hit the wrong note.

Race slid to the front, a microphone was clenched in his hand; Spot could tell he was in his element and was truly enjoying what he was doing. As he sang his solo it felt like he was talking to Spot and only Spot.

"_You're playing so cool  
>Obeying every rule<br>Dig way down in your heart  
>You're burnin, yearnin,<br>For somebody to tell you  
>That life aint passin you by<br>I'm trying to tell you  
>It will if you don't even try<br>You can fly!  
>If you only cut loose"<em>

The rest of the group once again joined in with the chorus. Spot could see Blink and Mush dancing and singing. The song ended and a girl stepped forward.

"Hello, we are Fame, a group of singers and dancers ranging from the age of 16-18. There are many movies that help us get into the Christmas spirit, but there is one movie that shows us no matter how old we are we need to believe in the true meaning of Christmas. This movie is the "Polar Express" and that is what our medley is all about."

The girl stepped back and the music started up again. Spot listened to the whole thing in awe. The entire group was amazing; Mush sang his solo and Spot knew he hit every note when a huge smile lit up his face. Blink and the girl that had spoken before had a dance solo with tons of lifts in it. The audience cheered when their solo was over. The performance ended with everyone in a group; heads lowered.

Blink stepped forward, "On behalf of Johnson productions we would like to thank you for being a warm and receptive audience. We wish you all a-"

Everyone looked up and said together, "Merry Christmas."

And then Blink was speaking again, "and a happy New Year."

The group walked off stage and the audience started to break up and continue their shopping. Spot waited for his friends to change into their street clothes so they could all go over to his house for dinner.

**Authors Note:** I am so sorry it took me so long to update. College classes started and I was looking for another job because my bosses are dumbasses. On a positive note I have been insanely busy because rehearsals for my group started and I began performing. I also auditioned for Synergy (yes the college group that is mentioned in this story; they are one and the same) If I make it I will go to Ecuador next summer and perform! If you could give me feedback on characters: the good, and the bad that would be awesome. Thanks for sticking with me after this long break.

**Next Time: **Dinner with Mrs. Conlon. The woman is very perceptive ;) 

**Plug: **I will be telling you all about stories that are amazing. It would be awesome if you all went and read them and left a review. There are two today: "Everything You've Done Wrong". This is an amazing Sprace and Blush fic. READ IT! "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" This is a Javid fic with a little bit of Sputchlets. There is also a very funny bit between Spot and Race.

**Shoutouts:**

**Jauntyspry: **Thanks for your review! I am so glad you are part of the TNC great memories here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy.

**DeathOnPaws: **Thanks for your review.

**BeatriceBlack: **Thanks I am glad you are enjoying it. *Blushes* I am not that great but thanks.

**DiAmOnDsrBLUe: **Yep they are! It might be lucky for Spot…maybe…lol. *Blushes* I am not a very good writer but thank you. *bows*

A warm shoutout to all that added me as an author and my story to their favorite/alert list. You all are wonderful people.


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